Blog Post: And the hits just keep on coming, don't they Microsoft.And the hits just keep on coming, don't they Microsoft.
In its latest move to outflank the Redmond software giant, Google will bundle Google Toolbar
with downloads of Adobe's Shockwave.
A new version of Shockwave, 10.1.3.018, was posted 6/21 according to Adobe's
download page. The Shockwave FAQs page lists
questions about the Google toolbar offer.
Google's deal with Adobe will help Google continue to spread its
products to consumers and compete with Microsoft, which is planning to
embed its new search tool in its Vista operating system, which should
ship early next year.
In the last year, Google has announced
Google Pack and
several web-based products that compete with Microsoft's core business;
Distributed Google Desktop on USB and flash drives; and shipped Google desktop software
with Dell PCs (hoping said PCs don't
explode).
According to Adobe, the Shockwave player runs on an
estimated 55.4% of Internet-ready PCs. Researchers estimate that 63% of American households, or about 40 million households, are currently connected to the Internet.
Dell, meanwhile, captured
18.2% of the consumer PC market in 2005. The global PC market (which also includes servers) was
208.6 million in 2005, according to IDC. Gartner estimated the market at 218.5 million.
Whatever the exact number of desktops and notebooks that will come with Google software, the number will far exceed the number of computers running Windows Live Search in Vista,
especially for the next year to two years.
Note 1: Adobe had an agreement with Yahoo to distribute the Yahoo toolbar, but the Google agreement replaces Yahoo's. However, Yahoo will continue to have an agreement with Adobe whereby their users who download the Flash player and Adobe Reader will be asked if they'd like to download the Yahoo Toolbar.
Note 2: Shockwave and Flash are not the same thing. Shockwave was originally
intended for more robust applications created with Macromedia (now
Flash) Director. Director, however, may be phased out due to the
competing abilities of Flex 2, which is being released shortly. In fact, the latest update to the Shockwave FAQ doesn't even mention Director. The Flash player FAQ, however, still contains copy about Director.
This article originally appeared on Steve Bryant's blog, GoogleWatch.
